Turenne's Winter Campaign

Last updated
Turenne's Winter Campaign
Part of the Franco-Dutch War
DateDecember 1674 – January 5, 1675
Location
Result

French victory

  • Holy Roman Empire expelled from Alsace
Belligerents
Royal Standard of the King of France.svg  France Banner of the Holy Roman Emperor (after 1400).svg  Holy Roman Empire
Wappen Mark Brandenburg.png Brandenburg-Prussia
Commanders and leaders
Royal Standard of the King of France.svg Vicomte de Turenne Banner of the Holy Roman Emperor (after 1400).svg Alexander von Bournonville
Banner of the Holy Roman Emperor (after 1400).svg Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine
Wappen Mark Brandenburg.png Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg
Strength
Initial:
20,000 [1] –28,000 men [2] [3]
Total:
33,000 men
Initial:
57,000 men [4] [5]
Total:
70,000 men [6] [7]

Turenne's Winter Campaign took place during the Franco-Dutch War of 1672-78. During December 1674 and January 1675, Henri de la Tour d'Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne, led French forces on a flank march that resulted in the defeat of an army fielded principally by the Holy Roman Empire and in that army's expulsion from Alsace.

Contents

Background

The Franco-Dutch War largely stemmed from the desires of King Louis XIV to achieve glory through military victory and to punish the Netherlands for what he perceived to be Dutch betrayal during the War of Devolution (1667–68). The Dutch had started that war as a French ally but, faced with Louis's growing territorial ambitions, had ended by allying with England and Sweden to curb French expansionism. Pressure from this new alliance forced Louis to accept a compromise end to the War of Devolution. Louis then paid off Sweden and England to abandon the alliance. In 1672, France invaded the Netherlands, but the Dutch managed to bog down the French advance. Soon other powers, including the Holy Roman Empire, joined the war against France. [8]

While the main campaign of 1674 was being fought in the Netherlands, Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, sought to open a second front against France in Alsace. Much of this province was under French control, but parts of it were not, such as the free city of Strasbourg. [9]

An Imperial army under Field Marshal Alexander von Bournonville crossed the Rhine River into Alsace at Strasbourg in September 1674. Turenne attacked the Imperials on October 4 at Entzheim with a smaller force. Although the battle was indecisive tactically, it prompted Bournonville to end the 1674 campaign and enter winter quarters. There he was reinforced by troops provided by Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg. King Louis attempted to strengthen Turenne's army, but met with mixed success. The Louis de Bourbon, Prince of Conde (the Grand Conde) sent 20 infantry battalions and 24 cavalry squadrons from his army in the north; this helped Turenne, but he was still heavily outnumbered. The king also invoked the arriere ban, a relic of feudal times calling on French nobles to support the monarchy with levies. Over 5,000 men assembled at Nancy, but they were undisciplined and useless to Turenne, who had them disbanded in November. [10]

Turenne's Plan

Armies in the Seventeenth Century generally campaigned between April and October and avoided combat during the winter. Bad weather made movement of artillery and supplies difficult as autumn rains and spring floods turned roads to mud. Food and kindling for the men were hard to come by in the winter, as was fodder for animals. Armies entered winter quarters in the late autumn and began to campaign again in the spring. Bournonville carried on this tradition in 1674 by moving his army of around 57,000 men into camps mainly in the rich region around Colmar in southern Alsace. He expected his opponent to also suspend operations over the winter. [11]

Turenne's army was encamped between Saverne and Haguenau in northern Alsace. However, the French were not really in winter quarters. The French military administration under Francois-Michel le Tellier, Marquis de Louvois, had so reformed the army's supply system that French troops could campaign all year. As he explained to King Louis, Turenne determined to use this advantage over the enemy army by marching around its flank and launching a surprise attack in the dead of winter. [12]

French Deception

Turenne took steps to allay any suspicions Bournonville might have about French intentions. The French fortresses in Middle Alsace were put in a state of defence, as if the French were settling in for the winter. Turenne marched his field army southwest—away from the enemy. Once the reinforcements from Conde's army arrived, Turenne commanded a total of 33,000 men. He split his force into smaller units to confuse enemy agents. Each unit was given specific instructions on the route it was to take; however, Turenne did not divulge his ultimate aim. He kept the Vosges Mountains between his men and the enemy, and used his cavalry to further screen his manoeuvre. [13]

The Winter March

The French field army left its camps near Saverne at the beginning of December 1674 and moved into Lorraine. Turenne requisitioned large amounts of grain and other foodstuffs, ruthlessly ignoring the complaints of the local authorities that he was stripping the province of food. The march led through Sarrebourg and Baccarat, and reached Epinal on December 18. [14]

In Alsace, Bournonville and his allies argued over what to do. Some generals wanted to continue campaigning in the winter and attack Saverne or Haguenau. The Elector of Brandenburg preferred to move south and take Belfort. The exiled Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine sought to reclaim his province. He sent troops to take Remiremont and Epinal. As Turenne's forces approached the latter, the duke's men fled. [15]

As news of the French march was reported to the enemy commanders, Turenne sought to further confuse them about where the French were going. Detachments left the main body and moved east, into the Vosges. They made a show of attacking through the mountain passes, including Col du Bonhomme and Col de la Schlucht. Although enemy troops retreated under their pressure, the French had no intention of pressing home these attacks. [16]

19th century engraving of the Battle of Turckheim Battle-Turckheim.jpg
19th century engraving of the Battle of Turckheim

After Epinal, Turenne turned southeast. Snow and bad roads slowed the advance, as the men tired and food ran short. The French main body marched through Remiremont, meeting no resistance from the troops of the Duke of Lorraine, and entered Belfort on December 27. The French had now come to the southern end of the Vosges. From there, Turenne moved northeast, reaching Mulhouse in southern Alsace on December 29. Taking an enemy detachment by surprise there, Turenne gained a quick victory at the Battle of Mulhouse. As the new year began, the French struck due north at the enemy headquarters near Colmar. At the Battle of Turckheim on January 5, 1675, Turenne decisively defeated Bournonville. The latter was forced to evacuate Alsace and cross back over the Rhine at Strasbourg. [17]

Assessment

A French soldier said that Turenne's manoeuvre during the Winter Campaign was "one of the best concerted Stratagems and at the same Time one of the greatest Actions that ever was done by any General." Even though he was 64 years old, Turenne boldly decided to flout convention by campaigning in winter. Other generals might lose their edge with age, but Napoleon said of Turenne that his "audacity grew with years and experience." He ably used the natural feature of the Vosges to mask his march. His campaign anticipated similar manoeuvres that would later be carried out by such great generals as Napoleon and Stonewall Jackson. [18]

Notes

  1. Barnes, A.S.. A Brief History of France. 1875. 164
  2. Tucker, Spencer C. (2009). A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East [6 volumes]: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East. ABC-CLIO, 651
  3. Clodfelter, Micheal (2008). Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Reference to Casualty and Other Figures, 1494-2007 (3rd ed.). McFarland & Co. 46
  4. Tucker, Spencer C. (2009). A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East [6 volumes]: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East. ABC-CLIO, 651
  5. Clodfelter, Micheal (2008). Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Reference to Casualty and Other Figures, 1494-2007 (3rd ed.). McFarland & Co. 46
  6. Hume, David. History of England, by Hume and Smollett. HardPress Publishing, 2019. 133
  7. Barnes, A.S.. A Brief History of France. 1875. 164
  8. John Lynn, The Wars of Louis XIV, 1667-1714 (London, New York: Longman, 1999), 105-122.
  9. David Chandler, Atlas of Military Strategy (New York: the Free Press, 1980) 40; Peace Treaty between the Holy Roman Emperor and the King of France and their respective Allies (Treaty of Westphalia), article 74, avalon.law.yale.edu/17th_century/westphal.asp (accessed September 20, 2015); Lynn, The Wars of Louis XIV, 110-111, 131.
  10. David Chandler, Marlborough as Military Commander (Staplehurst, Kent: Spellmount, 1984) 7; Lynn, The Wars of Louis XIV, 110-111, 131-133.
  11. Chandler, Marlborough as Military Commander, 63.
  12. John Keegan and Andrew Wheatcroft, Who's Who in Military History (New York: William Morrow & Co. Inc., 1976) 329; A Relation or Journal of the Campaigns of the Marechal de Turenne, in the Years One Thousand Six Hundred Seventy Four, and One Thousand Six Hundred Seventy Five; 'Til the Time of His Death. Done from the French, By an Officer of the Army (Dublin: Addison's Head, 1732), 66.
  13. A Relation or Journal, 66; Chandler, Atlas of Military Strategy, 40; Theodore Ayrault Dodge, Gustavus Adolphus: A History of the Art of War from its Revival After the Middle Ages to the End of the Spanish Succession War, with a Detailed Account of the Campaigns of the Great Swede, and of the Most Famous Campaigns of Turenne, Conde, Eugene, and Marlborough (Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1890), Vol. II, 625, 627.
  14. Richard Brooks, ed., Atlas of World Military History (New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 2000) 84; Dodge, Gustavus Adolphus, II: 627-28; A Relation or Journal, 67.
  15. A Relation or Journal, 68.
  16. Brooks, Atlas of World Military History, 84; Dodge, Gustavus Adolphus, II: 627-28; A Relation or Journal, 67-68.
  17. Brooks, Atlas of World Military History, 84; Dodge, Gustavus Adolphus, II: 628; A Relation or Journal, 68.
  18. Brooks, Atlas of World Military History, 84; Lynn, The Wars of Louis XIV, 127; Chandler, Atlas of Military Strategy, 40; A Relation or Journal, 65.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Ramillies</span> 1706 battle in the War of the Spanish Succession

The Battle of Ramillies, fought on 23 May 1706, was a battle of the War of the Spanish Succession. For the Grand Alliance – Austria, England, and the Dutch Republic – the battle had followed an indecisive campaign against the Bourbon armies of King Louis XIV of France in 1705. Although the Allies had captured Barcelona that year, they had been forced to abandon their campaign on the Moselle, had stalled in the Spanish Netherlands and suffered defeat in northern Italy. Yet despite his opponents' setbacks Louis XIV wanted peace, but on reasonable terms. Because of this, as well as to maintain their momentum, the French and their allies took the offensive in 1706.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough</span> British soldier and statesman (1650–1722)

General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, was an English soldier and statesman. From a gentry family, he served as a page at the court of the House of Stuart under James, Duke of York, through the 1670s and early 1680s, earning military and political advancement through his courage and diplomatic skill. He is known for never having lost a battle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Turckheim</span> 1675 battle of the Franco-Dutch War

The Battle of Turckheim took place during the Franco-Dutch War that occurred on 5 January 1675 at a site between the towns of Colmar and Turckheim in Alsace. The French army, commanded by the Viscount of Turenne, defeated the armies of Austria and Brandenburg, led by Alexander von Bournonville and Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Fronde</span> Civil wars in France between 1648 and 1653

The Fronde were a series of civil wars in the Kingdom of France between 1648 and 1653, occurring in the midst of the Franco-Spanish War, which had begun in 1635. The government of the young King Louis XIV confronted the combined opposition of the princes, the nobility, the law courts (parlements), as well as much of the French population, and managed to subdue them all. The dispute started when the government of France issued seven fiscal edicts, six of which were to increase taxation. The parlements resisted, questioned the constitutionality of the king's actions, and sought to check his powers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louis, Grand Condé</span> Prince of the Condé branch of the House of Bourbon and French military leader

Louis II de Bourbon, Prince of Condé, known as le Grand Condé, was a French military commander. A brilliant tactician and strategist, he is regarded as one of France's greatest generals, particularly celebrated for his triumphs in the Thirty Years' War and his campaigns during the Franco-Dutch War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, Viscount of Turenne</span> French nobleman, general, Marshal of France (1611–1675)

Henri de La Tour d'Auvergne, vicomte de Turenne, commonly known as Turenne, was a French general and one of only six Marshals to have been promoted Marshal General of France. The most illustrious member of the La Tour d'Auvergne family, his military exploits over his five-decade career earned him a reputation as one of the greatest military commanders in history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franco-Dutch War</span> 1672–1678 European war

The Franco-Dutch War, also known as the Dutch War, was fought between France and the Dutch Republic, supported by its allies the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Brandenburg-Prussia and Denmark-Norway. In its early stages, France was allied with Münster and Cologne, as well as England. The 1672 to 1674 Third Anglo-Dutch War and 1675 to 1679 Scanian War are considered related conflicts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Camille d'Hostun, duc de Tallard</span> French nobleman, diplomat, and marshal

Camille d'Hostun de la Baume, duc de Tallard was a French nobleman, diplomat and military commander, who became a Marshal of France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theodore Ayrault Dodge</span> United States Army officer and author (1842–1909)

Theodore Ayrault Dodge was an American officer, military historian, and businessman. He fought as a Union officer in the American Civil War; as a writer, he was devoted to both the Civil War and the great generals of ancient and European history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Line (formation)</span> Tactical formation of soldiers

The line formation is a standard tactical formation which was used in early modern warfare. It continued the phalanx formation or shield wall of infantry armed with polearms in use during antiquity and the Middle Ages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Mons (1691)</span> 1691 battle of the Nine Years War

The siege of Mons, 15 March–10 April 1691, was a major operation fought during the Nine Years' War, and was the main French objective for the 1691 campaign in the Spanish Netherlands. The city was besieged and captured before the normal commencement of the campaigning season with minimal losses. The outcome was not in doubt, but in a conflict dominated by siege warfare, neither the French army of King Louis XIV, nor the forces of the Grand Alliance under King William III, could bring about a decisive battle. After the siege the duc de Boufflers bombarded the neutral city of Liège, whilst the duc de Luxembourg captured Halle, and scored a minor victory against the Prince of Waldeck at the Battle of Leuze in September. Strategically, however, little had changed in the war, and both combatants returned to winter quarters at the end of the campaigning season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Salzbach</span>

The Battle of Salzbach, or Sasbach, took place on 27 July 1675 during the Franco-Dutch War, when an Imperial army under Raimondo Montecuccoli confronted a French force commanded by Marshal Turenne. The "battle" consisted primarily of an artillery duel, during which Turenne was killed by a cannonball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Valenciennes (1656)</span> 1656 battle during the Franco-Spanish War

The Battle of Valenciennes was fought on 16 July 1656 between the Spanish troops commanded by John Joseph of Austria and the French troops under Henri de la Tour d'Auvergne, Vicomte de Turenne, in the outskirts of the city of Valenciennes in the Spanish Netherlands during the Franco-Spanish War. After a period of Spanish recovery following the Peace of Münster in 1648, France went again on the offensive in 1654, having succeeded in suppressing internal rebellions, and took several towns in the province of Hainaut over the course of two years. On early 1656, Turenne was instructed by the French court to continue the offensive. He intended at first to besiege Tournai, but realising that it had been strongly reinforced by the Army of Flanders under the newly appointed John Joseph of Austria, illegitimate son of Philip IV of Spain, he went instead to besiege Valenciennes, in the course of the Scheldt River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">French Royal Army</span> Principal army of the Kingdom of France

The French Royal Army was the principal land force of the Kingdom of France. It served the Bourbon dynasty from the reign of Louis XIV in the mid-17th century to that of Charles X in the 19th, with an interlude from 1792 to 1814 and another during the Hundred Days in 1815. It was permanently dissolved following the July Revolution in 1830. The French Royal Army became a model for the new regimental system that was to be imitated throughout Europe from the mid-17th century onward. It was regarded as Europe's greatest military force for much of its existence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Sinsheim</span>

The Battle of Sinsheim took place on 16 June 1674, near Sinsheim in modern Baden-Württemberg, then in the Holy Roman Empire. Part of the 1672 to 1678 Franco-Dutch War, a French army under Marshall Turenne defeated an Imperial force led by Aeneas de Caprara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Entzheim</span> Battle on 4 October 1674 near Entzheim during the Franco-Dutch War

The Battle of Entzheim took place on 4 October 1674, during the 1672 to 1678 Franco-Dutch War. It was fought near the town of Entzheim, south of Strasbourg in Alsace, between a French army under Turenne, and an Imperial force commanded by Alexander von Bournonville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Mulhouse (1674)</span> Battle in the Franco-Dutch War

The Battle of Mulhouse took place on 29 December 1674 in Alsace, part of Turenne's Winter Campaign during the Franco-Dutch War. It was fought by the French army under Turenne and part of Alexander von Bournonville's Imperial army commanded by Hermann of Baden-Baden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Altenheim</span>

The Battle of Altenheim took place on 1 August 1675 during the 1672-1678 Franco-Dutch War near Altenheim, in modern Baden-Württemberg. It was fought by a French army of 20,000, jointly commanded by the Marquis de Vaubrun and the Comte de Lorges, and an Imperial Army of 30,000 under Raimondo Montecuccoli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles de Montsaulnin, Comte de Montal</span> 17th century French military officer and noble

Charles de Montsaulnin, Comte de Montal (1619–1696) was a 17th-century French military officer and noble who was a close friend of Le Grand Condé, and fought in many of the wars of Louis XIV of France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Hamilton, Comte d'Hamilton</span> Irish soldier in French service (died 1676)

Sir George Hamilton, Comte d'Hamilton was an Irish soldier in English and French service as well as a courtier at Charles II's Whitehall.

References